Friday, October 7, 2011

It's become an annual tradition, on October 7th to celebrate Women In Technology and honor the legacy of Ada Lovelace. This year, many are talking about the women who have influenced them in their careers.
I plan to do the same in this post, but probably not honoring the people you would at first think.

As a member of the SQL community, there are the women who are at the top of all of our lists: Kalen Delaney and Kimberly Tripp to name the first two who come to mind (followed closely by Karen Lopez and Kendra Little...am I the only one sensing a trend with the 'K' names here?). However, the women in our community who have influenced me most are not household names, but deserve recognition, if only from me.

First, is Denise McInerny. A long time member of the SQL PASS community, I met her on my first day of my very first Summit (see Summit Memories post). Denise has been quite an inspiration to me over the years and not just because of her involvement with the WIT community. I admire her drive and sense of perspective in so many ways! She is not afraid of challenging the status quo and has no problem standing up for what she believes is Right. As much as she is an advocate of WIT, she's also a great person to go to when I'm not sure how to interpret events or resolve conflicts. Thanks, Denise for all the years of support and guidance, it's truly appreciated!

Next, I'd like to bring your attention to Kim Tessereau. I don't think she knows it, but she's been a big influence on me, inspiring me to take the stand and speak at a technical level. I've always loved teaching, and her easy-going style and ability to break concepts down into manageable chunks is something I aspire to reach. You can catch Kim at SQL Saturday events in the Midwest, so don't miss her if you get the chance!

Finally, for service with a smile no matter how crazy things can get, I'd like to recognize Sanjeet Gandham from PASS HQ. Sanj is always on top of things. She keeps absolutely everything organized. I wish I had 1/10th of the organizational ability she displays. Sanj, thank you for inspiring me to take on the tasks I have and give me the faith that I *can* get it all done.

Thank you all - I'm happy to not only know you and have the opportunity to work with you, but also to call each of you 'friend'.